Quality Counts, Performance Rankings and Evaluations, Policy Agendas,

Education Week issued their Quality Counts 2011 report this week (press release, report highlights).  Quality Counts is widely regarded as the most comprehensive ongoing assessment of the state of American education.  Overall, our nation received a ‘C’ grade, with Maryland earning the highest marks for an individual state.  Learn anything and everything about the report (including an outstanding state-by-state report card) here.  The Washington Post reports on the major findings of the report. edReformer offers five things that QC tells us about education.   EdWeek looks at how technology could offer cost savings and positive educational results to school districts in the near future.
Big New York news with national implications:  The New York Times and the LA Times report that a Manhattan judge ruled Monday that New York City may release performance rankings (also known as value-added scores) of thousands of teachers to the public, denying a request by the teachers union to keep the teachers’ names confidential.  Representatives of the teachers union plan to appeal.
The Wall Street Journal’s Stephanie Banchero analyzes the first policy agenda (pdf) released by (EEP board member) Michelle Rhee’s new organization, StudentsFirst.
NJ Spotlight reports that Governor Chris Christie is planning to press for an overhaul of the current teacher evaluation system in the Garden State, which will change how educators are tenures, promoted, and paid. The governor should make this proposal in his State of the State address today.